1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an endoscope forceps plug which is used by being installed at a metal opening provided at an inlet port thereof when inserting a treatment instrument to a treatment instrument insertion channel of an endoscope.
2. Description of the Related Art
In the related art, a medical endoscope may not only observe a state inside a body, but may also collect a tissue cell thereof and perform a predetermined treatment when a lesion or the like is present inside the body. For that reason, the endoscope has a treatment instrument insertion channel where the forceps or the other treatment instruments are inserted to an insertion part thereof. The proximal end of the treatment instrument insertion channel leads to a treatment instrument guide section which is provided at a main body operation section and in addition, a distal end is open as a treatment instrument outlet port together with an observation section or the like which is provided at a distal end surface or a distal end side surface of the insertion part.
A forceps plug (stopcock body) is attached to the treatment instrument guide section via the metal opening. The forceps plug stops up the treatment instrument guide section so that blood, waste inside the body, saline for internal lavage and the like which flow backward from inside the body of a subject may not leak outward from the treatment instrument guide section.
In order to meet demand for diversified or complicated surgeries using the endoscope, the endoscope forceps plug which is effective with respect to various treatment instruments is needed. In the present circumstances, the forceps plug includes an insertion channel for a valve into which the treatment instrument is inserted so as to prevent liquid leakage when using the treatment instrument. However, the many different sizes of treatment instrument cause difficulties in managing both the liquid leakage prevention and a reasonable insertion resistance to the treatment instrument. When using a large-sized treatment instrument, the insertion resistance increases and the endoscope is adversely affected.
For example, an endoscope forceps plug disclosed in JP2009-268777A integrally includes a cylindrical main body section that is fixed to a forceps entrance which is an inlet port of a treatment instrument insertion channel and where an insertion channel for admitting a treatment instrument is formed, a stopcock that is detachably attached to the upper part of the main body via a connection section, and a stopper member that is formed in a shape of a columnar block at the main body via the connection section of a band-like body. The stopper member has a notched portion oriented from the outer periphery to the center and fixes the treatment instrument in such a manner that the notched portion pinches the treatment instrument which is admitted to the insertion channel of the main body. The stopper member may be used in combination with the stopcock. Since the stopper member having the notched portion is integrally provided at the forceps plug main body, the forceps entrance section may not be substantially changed, a simple configuration allows the treatment instrument to be fixed and the treatment instrument may be easily fixed at a desired insertion place.
In addition, an endoscope forceps plug disclosed in JP2009-183432A is configured from a main body which has an insertion channel and a cylindrical elastic tube body that has at least one closed distal end which is fitted to the insertion channel. The elastic tube body has a longer length than a main body insertion channel, an outer diameter which is approximately the same as or slightly larger than an inner diameter of the insertion channel, and is closely placed while maintaining an urging force which spreads in the radial direction from the center with respect to the insertion channel. As a result, a highly sealed state is maintained inside a treatment instrument insertion channel or inside a suction tube which communicates with the channel. Thus, air or fluid inside a subject is prevented from leaking or flowing out from a distal end through the treatment instrument insertion channel. The influence of being worn out or a decrease in restoring force due to repeated uses may be reduced. In addition, the elastic tube body may be deformed such that a side surface thereof is crushed when inserting the treatment instrument and thereby may allow the treatment instrument to pass through.